Development
The right room,
on the right street.
We open slowly, and we build with operators who will still be there in ten years. If you have a site that fits the way we work, we'd like to see it.
What we look for
Three
requirements.
- 01
Ground-floor neighborhood streets.
Walkable, residential-adjacent, rich with repeat guests. We avoid food-court and mall tenancy.
- 02
3,000 – 6,000 sq ft.
Rooms with presence. High ceilings when we can find them. Proper back-of-house with a real loading path.
- 03
Long leases, long partnership.
We structure terms for a ten-year horizon. Landlord relationships we can keep warm through two renewals.
What we bring
Why landlords
pick us twice.
Corporate guarantee
Group-backed lease, not a single-entity shell. Underwriters can request financials.
10-year track record
Four open rooms since 2017. None closed. One opened through COVID.
In-house build-out team
Our architect, GC, and kitchen designer work across all venues. No concept partner, no hand-off.
Chef-led every time
A named chef and GM on payroll months before opening. The room is designed by its operators.
How we work
Our approach
to new rooms.
We underwrite the room, not the market.
The question isn't whether a neighborhood can sustain another restaurant. It's whether this specific room, on this specific block, can become a fixture.
Build-out owned by the group.
We bring our own architect, GC, and kitchen designer. We control cost, timing, and quality. We don't hand a venue over to a concept partner and hope.
A year of looking. A year of building.
From signed LOI to opening night is rarely under 18 months. The rush doesn't exist here — rushed rooms never settle.
Operator-led, always.
Each new venue has a chef and a GM on payroll months before opening. They design the room they will run.
What we've opened
Four rooms
in eight years.
A short portfolio, on purpose. Every room stayed. None of them closed. One opened through COVID. Each is still run by the chef who opened it.
- Stellina Ristorante2017Locust Valley, NYStill with opening chef.
- L'Étoile2019Oyster Bay, NYOriginal GM since day one.
- Casa Stellina2023Long Island, NYOpened during renovation of the parent room.
- The Audrey2024Oyster Bay, NYOur first all-day format.
Before you write
A few
common questions.
What lease terms do you look for?
10 + 5 + 5 is our default — a ten-year initial term with two five-year options. We structure rent escalations modestly and front-load TI amortization.
Do you provide a corporate guarantee?
Yes. Stellina Hospitality guarantees every lease. We can share audited financials under NDA during underwriting.
What's your typical build-out timeline?
12–14 months from handover. We pre-permit and pre-hire so construction moves efficiently, but we don't rush a kitchen that will need to run for ten years.
Do you need a TI allowance?
Usually, yes. Range varies by venue type — cafés run lighter, destination restaurants run heavier. Happy to discuss specifics once we've seen the site.
Reach out
Tell us about the site.
Address, square footage, a floor plan if you have one. We read every inquiry ourselves and respond within a week.
development@stellinahospitality.com